Effects Of The Silver Trade

The silver trade of the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries was a major historical process. The global flow of silver had many effects on the multitude of societies that participated. There were many economic effects, such as the heavy global economic involvement of many Asian nations in this trade (Documents 2,4,6,7,8) and greater monetary pressure in China during the Ming Dynasty (Documents 1,3,5), and some social nuances because of this trade, such as a greater European desire for Asian goods (2,4,8), but the economic effects had a greater historical impact because this was the first time a global currency was present in trade. The Asian continent held many countries that engaged in the global silver trade, which had a substantial impact …show more content…
This is because the merchants in China at that time of great global commerce would have been directly involved in the trade of Chinese goods, such as silk, with people from other nations. Since these merchants were responsible for the exchange of their merchandise for silver, they would have experienced the desire to acquire this new currency and the impact the incursion of the silver had on their business …show more content…
In document 2, as Tomas de Mercado makes his case about high prices he mentions how Asian commodities were valued. As mentioned before this had many economic effects but the value of Asian commodities in itself was a social outcome. Because of these new Asian goods, many items assimilated into European culture. Without the silver trade, the amount of silk Europe gained would not have been close to what it was. Document 4 explains how Portugal bought many Chinese goods with silver. This also led to Chinese luxury goods being present in Portuguese society, a form of cultural diffusion. Lastly, in document 8, the author explains how Europeans developed a craving for Asian goods once they had experienced them. These experiences were spurred by the silver trade because Europe was able to gain access to new